Santa Cruz

We decided to go with some friends on a last minute trip to Santa Cruz over Memorial Day weekend it was so fun and wasn’t too expensive, which made for a great little getaway. We all have small kids so we rented a big house near the beach on Airbnb (with a jacuzzi!) for two nights. It was a great vacation for kids so I thought it might be useful to share our itinerary here. Day 1: We went to the Roaring Camp Railroads Steam Train. It’s an hour long ride through the redwoods on a steam train. The kids looooved it. After naps at the house we took a walk to the beach and played in the waves. That night my friend found a babysitter so the adults could go out for Sushi. Day 2: We headed over to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk and went on a bunch of rides. The kids loved the rides and junk food. After they got tired we could head back to the house which was 5 minutes away. During down times we sat around and talked or hung out in the jacuzzi and took naps. For dinner we had a barbecue that night on the patio. Day 3: Was the sunniest day so after a breakfast at Gayle’s bakery we went to the beach and stayed until we were sun kissed and tired. We jumped in the car and and hour and a half later we were back home in the city. I love when things come together so easy and last minute like that. My Santa Cruz food suggestions are below. I’d love to hear yours in the comments.

love this idea – we drove by the santa cruz boardwalk (I remember those chairs!) once on a trip further south but unfortunately, the weather was terrible that day so we didn’t get to get out and enjoy the boardwalk. But definitely putting this on our list for the next CA trip – and the train is a great idea. I didn’t know about that one but it would be a hit with my diplo-tot and adult husband alike. Glad to hear you had a great weekend!

My family ended up going to the beach in a picturesque village in Ayrshire, Scotland. The temp was 77*F and gorgeous! We passed cottages and castle ruins. Enjoyed ice cream on the boardwalk and even dipped our toes in the freezing water.

Then Sunday we went to a local estate and saw a gorgeous old Victorian home. I got my Jane Austen on! We walked around the country park and enjoyed the garden’s. Couldn’t have asked for a more perfect Scottish weekend!

Santa Cruz is my hometown and the longer I’m gone the more I miss it. I always crave Pizza My Heart, El Palomar (fancy, yummy Mexican food. Order the burrito de camarones), Verve coffee, Carpos for their salad bar. And cotton candy at the boardwalk….

Verve Coffee Roasters on Pacific Ave. downtown. The interior is stunning and their baristas have won awards for their espresso pulls! Don’t forget Marini’s for saltwater taffy, ice cream, and candies. There’s one on the boardwalk and bigger one on Pacific. Try the peanutbutter rice krispy treats!

I love marriane’s for ice cream. It’s a must stop every time I head over to Scott’s Creek beach on hwy 1. That beach is awesome btw… has piles and piles of gorgeous whole shells and its rarely got people on it…. just a few miles north of SC too. I love norcal. Welcome back!

These photos looks so amazing! I’m italian (therefore I apologize for my english) and it’s strange and wonderful to see a different world: place, life, colours totally different from the most italians ones. I love your site even for this reason!

Cafe Delmarette is a super tiny–but super delicious–little cafe on Pacific. They have the best sandwiches and the tastiest scones I’ve had outside of Europe.

Cafe Campesino is a delicious all-natural (and not super greasy!) stand on the sidewalks on Pacific, right outside New Leaf Market. The food takes me straight back to the time I spent studying abroad in rural Mexico. HUGE portions, so there is definitely enough to share!

Glad you had a fun trip! There’s nothing like a sunny, warm Santa Cruz beach day.

I’ve never been to Sana Cru, but your trip look great and really I just wanted to throw my weight behind a weekend break where ease and frequency of napping for kids *and* adults is a consideration. Ah, sweet afternoon nap…

We are back in Sicily, cleaning up a storm, eating all the gelato and awaiting my parents’ arrival this weekend.

We went just last month! We ate at Lillian’s and it was so good. Also, like another said, go to Marianne’s for Ice Cream you won’t be disappointed! They have sooo many flavors to choose from and surprisingly my personal favorite was the green tea. We also tried banana, oreo, and oatmeal cookie dough! And if you’re ever in Monterey, my favorite place was the Wild Plum Cafe! Their savory pancakes were delicious!

I adore santa cruz! My favorite place to go is Zoccoli’s, an Italian deli downtown. They have the yummiest sandwiches! Also, Hart’s Fabric is a great place to check out in Santa Cruz, they have the most adorable and quirky fabric selection– so lovely!

Paulas is a tiny little surf shack breakfast joint off of 41st. You can play cards or sit in the VW bus while you wait. They cook your food on hot plates instead of a real stove but it has so much character. Pleasure pizza, also on 41st is the original. Best food after surfing and I guarantee that every professional surfer has walked through that door. For amazing good, wholesome food try Dharmas. They use fresh ingredients and have a great soup, salad and brown rice special. Try their desserts too. I could write for days but enjoy those next time!

My husband and I met and fell in love in Santa Cruz (both of us went to UCSC, go slugs!) so I love seeing the town from an outsiders perspective, especially now that we live far away in Chicago.

Bonny Doon recently moved to a fabulous location on the west side off of Swift St. and has a restaurant formerly called Cellar Door now called Le Cigare Volant that is a must. In the same area is a bakery called Kelly’s which makes great bread and cafe fare (but as a former Paris resident myself, pass on the croissants!). New Leaf Market is also around the corner and is the perfect place to grab picnic supplies to take down to Natural Bridges beach.

Glad to see you giving a shout out to the Penny Ice Creamery! Lovely flavors there made with care!

The Buttery in Santa Cruz is a great bakery as well as The Farm in Aptos. Soif is a beautiful wine bar on Walnut just off the mall – really good food, but probably not a real happy place for kids! We love Gayles too!

It was on that ride at the boardwalk that I discovered I have developed a case on adult onset fear of heights. I thought it would be so fun and cute, but I ended up terrified my shoes would fall off while clutching my boyfriend and begging him to stay perfectly still so the seat didn’t rock. We had a good laugh about it once we were safely back on the ground.

love Verve Coffee on Pacific and on 41st, or head to their roastery in the Seabright neighborhood Engfers pizza on Seabright The Picnic Basket is right across from the boardwalk, and have delicious sandwiches, and ice cream (they are owned by the Penny) and homemade jelly donuts!

Oooh! Love your photos. The last time we were in Santa Cruz the weather was less than great. Some really fun indoor options for the little ones are pirate-themed mini golf @ Neptune’s Kingdom (at the boardwalk) and roller skating at the Roller Palladium (yes!).

Oh, this is fabulous! We had a cabin in the Santa Cruz mountains growing up (about a mile from Roaring Camp Railroad) and we would spend our summers there. So wonderful and so fun. Your photos and the comments from others have been a fun trip down memory lane for us.

Haven’t been to Santa Cruz… yet! Making a mental note to come back and check this post out when I do head out that way, so I know what spots to hit! I loved that last shot of your ‘instant’ print and was wondering what you shot it with. Looks like you had a wonderful time on a rather idyllic trip. Hope to have the same soon!

Obviously Gayle’s, did you try the gorgonzola spinach pasta or the salted caramel cake? Village Host Pizza-our favorite pizza on earth- love the hawaiian or the veggie-but it’s all good. Aptos Street BBQ- get there early on busy weekends because they sell out! Palapas-Mexican food featuring amazing fresh seafood Deluxe foods-the cutest local grocery store, we get our Marianne’s ice cream there-especially the Cinnamon caramel or the cantaloupe. We’ve also had them cater our Thanksgiving! and even though Erik’s Deli is all over the bay area we only seem to eat it when we are at the coast.

You have to go to the Mystery Spot! Renting in Aptos is a great option…our family has been doing it for 4 generations-it all started when my great grandpa met my great grandma here!

I work at the Penny Ice Creamery!!! So awesome to see it listed on here. I always feel like our lives are running sort of parallel, Jordan- I lived in France at the same time you did, I’m from San Francisco and just came back (now I’m in school at UCSC). What a strange world! Next time you’re down here, you should try The Picnic Basket. It’s The Penny’s sister cafe that served breakfast, lunch and dinner in a really relaxed atmosphere across from the boardwalk. I can’t recommend anything specific because, like The Penny, our menu changes with the season and features locally grown, organic ingredients. I know you’ll love it!

I agree….The Mystery Spot! You will all enjoy it Pleasure Point Pizza is awesome. Betty’s Burgers is great too! Really good malts. On the boardwalk we love to have corn dogs and fried Twinkies! On rainy days or chilly evenings the pee wee golf in Neptune’s is fun. Love the photos, Jordan